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The pilgrimage has been a centerpiece of European spirituality from the earliest days of Christianity, and remains so the modern era. Long before anyone thought of walking cross-country as a leisurely pastime, Christians were making difficult treks to reliquaries and the sites of miracles in a journey that was as much spiritual as it was physical. This flow of foot traffic left in its wake a number of long-distance trails, and today these routes are pursued by traditional pilgrims and recreational hikers alike.

Pilgrimage Basics

At the end of many pilgrimages is a site that has religious significance, although the path itself might be what is important. Some pilgrim routes have strictly local significance, while others are the focus of international attention. The 62-mile St. Cuthbert's Way is a British pilgrimage route that traces the steps of St. Cuthbert from Melrose Abbey in the Scottish borderlands to Lindisfarne in northern England. The famed Way of St. James is a pilgrim route that ends at the resting place of James the Apostle, at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Spanish Galicia. The best-known leg of this route is the Camino Frances, starting in St. Jean Pied de Port in southern France and covering more than 480 miles. However, there are also routes from southern Spain and Portugal to the cathedral, as well as pilgrim routes in France that tie in to the Camino Frances.

Orthodox Pilgrimages

Both St. Cuthbert's Way and the Way of St. James have their origins in Roman Catholicism, but Eastern Europe's orthodox community also has its pilgrimages. A popular Greek Orthodox pilgrimage follows St. Paul's trek across Greece and ends at the monastery on Mount Athos. Istanbul was once Constantinople, center of the Orthodox faith and home of the "first among equals" of the Orthodox Patriarchs. Its status as an Orthodox pilgrimage site is similar to that of Rome and St. Peters among Catholics.

Protestant Pilgrimages

Early Protestant reformers were not supporters of pilgrimages, viewing both the pilgrim's foot-borne journey and the reliquaries at the end of the journey as sources of abuse and corruption within the Roman Catholic Church. Martin Luther and John Calvin in particular condemned pilgrimages. Ergo, pilgrimages were never popular with European Protestants, and the pilgrim routes of Protestant northern Europe typically date from earlier Roman Catholic times. However, many Protestant faiths celebrate the saints and/or miracles, and the walking pilgrimages of Europe are open to Christians of all sects.

Modern Pilgrimages

Pilgrim routes continue to develop even in the modern era. The town of Fatima in Portugal was the setting for an apparition of the Virgin Mary in 1917, and that miracle and the sanctuary later erected to mark it have drawn throngs of pilgrims ever since. A marked pilgrim path from Lisbon to Fatima is in operation, although there are other unmarked routes in Portugal and Spain that also lead to Fatima.

Pilgrimage Tourism

As cross-country routes that combine the beauty of Europe's rural terrain with spirituality and sites of often historic significance, pilgrimage routes have become a natural for guides and companies offering pilgrimage tours. Such tours take the form of a traditional guided or self-guided walking tour; the guide or tour company handles the booking of accommodations, luggage transfers and other aspects of the trip, greatly reducing the hassles of walking cross-country.